1. Field of Invention
The present disclosure relates to a device for preventing fuel mixing in a vehicle, and more particularly to a device for preventing fuel mixing which can prevent gasoline vehicles or diesel vehicles from being filled with other kinds of fuel by mistake.
2. Description of Related Art
In general, when fueling a diesel vehicle at a gas station, an accident of pumping gasoline into it by mistake is frequently generated.
Accordingly, pumping different kinds of fuel into vehicles is prevented at gas stations by differentiating the diameters of a diesel nozzle and a gasoline nozzle.
For example, the diameter of a diesel nozzle is about 31 mm and the diameter of a gasoline nozzle is about 20˜21 mm.
The diameter of the fuel inlet of gasoline vehicles is usually about 20˜21 mm, the same as the diameter of the gasoline nozzle, and the diameter of the fuel inlet of diesel vehicles is usually about 45˜50 mm.
Therefore, the diesel nozzle cannot be put into the fuel inlet of the gasoline vehicles, but only the gasoline nozzle can be, so there is no problem of fuel mixing; however, since the gasoline nozzle, in addition to the diesel nozzle, can also be put into the fuel inlet of the diesel vehicles, fuels are frequently mixed.
Recently, self service gas stations for drivers to fuel by themselves are very popular with the increase in oil price and have several gas pumps to allow the drivers to fuel their vehicles in person, thereby consulting the drivers' convenience.
However, one gas pump has a nozzle for gasoline and a nozzle for diesel at the left and right sides, with a switch for selecting the kind of fuel at each side, such that when a driver selects a wrong nozzle or switch by mistake, fuels cannot help mixing, thereby frequently causing the problem of fuel mixing.
The accident of fuel mixing actually occurs frequently when fueling a diesel vehicle and the fuel mixing decreases the power of the engine and damages the engine itself, and it may also cause a big accident by stopping the engine while the vehicle is in motion. Further, the fuel mixing may damage the fuel system such as an injection pump.
In consideration of those problems, a variety of devices for preventing different kinds of fuel from mixing have been proposed in Korean Patent Publication No. 10-2006-0037948, Korean Patent Publication No. 10-2012-0103198, and Korean Utility Model Registration No. 20-0379665.
For example, “Capless fuel tanking system” has been disclosed in EP 1854653 A1.
The system has a structure that is composed of a latch and a flap door and can prevent fuel mixing by keeping the flap door closed when a nozzle for a different kind of fuel unsuitable for a vehicle is inserted, but opening the flap door when a nozzle for the kind of fuel suitable for the vehicle is inserted.
That is, since the diameter of the fuel inlet of a diesel vehicle is smaller than the gasoline nozzle, the latch does not move and the flap door is fixed and not opened in the structure.
The system, however, has a defect that when a person who fuels a vehicle inserts a nozzle for a different kind of fuel unsuitable for the vehicle and then starts pumping the fuel, the fuel overflows and it may cause a fire, with a loss of fuel.
Further, when a nozzle is inserted at an angle in a fuel inlet, the latch is operated and the door can open, so there is still the problem of fuel mixing.
The information disclosed in this Background section is only for enhancement of understanding of the general background of the invention and should not be taken as an acknowledgement or any form of suggestion that this information forms the prior art already known to a person skilled in the art.